Built their adventure on: modified Mid-Mountain Package
Why they loved it: customized package to fit everything their hearts desired!
This vow-renewal session had one goal: to show the many different ways to elope adventurously.
My hope is that as you scroll through these images, you can see how doable your radical, “out there,” dream could be for your wedding experience. Anything you could think of to celebrate your love could be turned into a real-life plan.
For this specific adventure, we modified a Mid-Mountain package, 8 hours of photography coverage, and spread our time together across two days.
Together, Bailey (she, her, hers), John (he, him, his), and I created a truly epic elopement plan: vows shared on a mountaintop AND a celebration in the sky.
Adventure is in your backyard.
When most people think about wanting to elope adventurously, faraway places come to mind, but that isn’t needed. I really wanted to show how beautiful right here is. For me, that’s the South, but wherever you’re located, there is an amazing elopement adventure for you. You don’t need to travel West to make it happen.
By planning your wedding experience closer to home, you get to make a cost-effective and often simpler plan. There can be a less complex travel itinerary, and you can avoid some travel fees allowing you to save or pre-prioritize that spend to something else amazing!
Elopements = increased intentionality.
One of my very favorite parts of elopements is how intentional everything gets to be. Instead of doing what is typically done, everything is hand-selected to be a part of the celebration. This vow renewal is no different!
The flowers had a nod to their original wedding: Lilies! I, personally, designed the florals (YES! I do a bit of it all- photography, elopement concierge, I’m ordained, and dabble in floral arrangements!) to be reminiscent of their original wedding flowers- lilies.
They brought Polaroid pictures from their original wedding with them to this vow renewal. The pictures were of their original wedding party as a way of bringing their loved ones with them while they “elope” adventurously. The lace underneath was Bailey’s original wedding veil. Little nods of history to join yesterday and today!
And lastly, they were intentional with their attire choices. With two miles ahead of them and some hot-air balloon adventuring, they needed to be able to freely move.
Bailey, with the help from The Wildlove Collective’s collection, opted for a flowy, silk chiffon two-piece set. The skirt’s train lightly dusted the trail as she hiked while giving her the freedom to move and the flowy fit created incredible movement in our images. She brought her original wedding veil, too.
John was in a lightweight, “eased fit” suit that allowed him look great, but, to move about within their adventure.
To note- If you’re wanting to elope adventurously, it is crucial to be strategic with your shoe choice. Because Bailey and John opted for hiking, they needed capable, comfortable shoes. John’s boots match nicely with his outfit and the peeking of Bailey’s favorite Blundstone boots just adds to the adventure bride aesthetic!
Elope Adventurously – night one
On our first night together, I arrived at the tail-end of Bailey (she, her, hers) and John (he, him, his) getting ready. I was able to snap some pictures as they put on their final touches.
As avid mountain-lovers, Bailey and John wanted to renew their vows on mountain-top. Arriving by sunset, we hiked up a mountain summit on the Appalachian Trail.
Once we arrived, a Pendleton wool blanket served as their ceremony “stage” for their vows but as their celebration spot post-vows, too. From that perch, they enjoyed charcuterie, snacks, and celebratory sips from their special handmade cups, all of which John carried up the mountain in a backpack!
Elope Adventurously – day two
Not only is the duo a lover of mountains, but also lovers of unique experiences. So when the idea of a hot air balloon excursion as part of their celebration was floated (lol, 😉 ), this couple was ready to fly! They were so excited about a bucket list experience!
We arrived at the “Helen, Georgia to the Atlantic Balloon Race” event and met our guides. We had a hunch that the winds might not be in our favor. Unfortunately, the weather did cancel the original plans for our hot air balloon ride, but we ended up with a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
We were able to take a tethered ride overlooking the festival and were given the opportunity to walk inside the canopy of one of the balloons. It was surreal, beautiful, and brag-worthy!
You should consider an elopement!
If you are someone that has always thought about how to elope adventurously…or maybe this concept is new to you…let this vow renewal prove to you that it is possible to elope adventurously AND easy to do so.
No matter if you, too, want to go sky-high or maybe water sports are more your deal, or horses, or deserts, or anything else under the sun…you can turn that thing you and your partner love into something to celebrate your “I dos.”
You don’t need anything overly elaborate- like traveling out west, or major rentals. In fact, an adventure elopement can happen locally and still be breathtakingly beautiful and incredibly fun!
Want to see another local-to-the-South adventure elopement session? Check out this secret elopement spot in the Atlanta-area!
You can check out all my services and my packages here!
Start by sending me an email (;
If you’re wanting to do it all on your own, start by doing some googling about hot air balloon events happening near you (or near where you want to elope). From there, you will just want to plan the other experiences and events around the festival!
